Pages

Monday, February 18, 2013

This week's free story is "Wood Chipper Blues", a unique story about murder and revenge from a dentists's point of view. It comes from Pandora's Children: The Complete Nightmares Book 1. It can be found at here and will be free from Monday, 2/11/13-2/15/13.

I am running a second Blood, Smoke and Ashes giveaway on Goodreads, which will last until March 5th. I will also be running new contests for signed copies of Reflecting on Midnight and both volumes of Pandora's Children: The Complete Nightmares in the coming weeks. Click here to go to the contest page for another chance to win a signed copy of BSA. And keep your eyes open for the other contests.

Don't forget to participate in the Rafflecopter contest, where Amazon gift cards will be given out every Sunday for the next four weeks. The second winner will be announced tomorrow. Click here to go directly to contest page.

That is this for this Sunday afternoon. Don't forget to share, Tweet, Like etc. My success, like the success of any artist, is dependent on you!

Sunday, February 10, 2013

For the next 5-6 weeks, I am going to write a post on Sunday night to relate any interesting news for the following week. Please share with friends!

This week's free story is "Swim", a true horror story from Pandora's Children: The Complete Nightmares Book 1. It can be found at here and will be free from Monday, 2/11/13-2/15/13.

For my submission to Publisher's Weekly, I had to write a 150 word "promo" to explain to them what makes Blood, Smoke and Ashes different from other books. Why they should consider it for review. Not easy for me to do, but I did it. And it forced me to think of what made my first novel different and special. And this is what i came up with: Blood,Smoke and Ashes combines the fast-paced nature of a traditional thriller with a complex human element found in traditional horror stories. It is a supernatural thriller/horror, a hybrid tale that blends genres and appeals to readers of both thrillers and dark fiction. It never gets bogged down with too much history but enough back story is presented to allow the reader to truly understand the characters and their motives. It is a character driven story, and while it is a supernatural tale, at its heart it is a story about the human spirit and the human condition: what drives us, what breaks us, what defines us. As FBI agent Jack Shaw discovers at the end of the book, not every monster is created equal, good and evil is not as black and white as he has always believed and not everything that is broken can be put back together.

Don't forget to participate in the Rafflecopter contest, where Amazon gift cards will be given out every Sunday for the next five weeks. The first winner will be announced tomorrow. Click here to go directly to contest page.

I know Authorgraph can be kind of lame, but if you're interested in having you Kindle copy of Blood, Smoke and Ashes- or any of my books- signed, click over to their webpage and make a request.

That is this for this Sunday afternoon. Don't forget to share, Tweet, Like etc. My success, like the success of any artist, is dependent on you!

Sunday, February 3, 2013

Rafflecopter- The Rafflecopter contest has started on my Facebook Page! Just click here to be redirected. Rules are easy. Do the assigned tasks, which include Tweeting, Liking, and reviewing the book, and earn chances to win one of several prizes. No purchase is necessary. Prizes include a $20 Amazon gift card (one given away every week for six weeks) and $100 and $150 gift cards if Blood, Smoke and Ashes hit certain sales numbers. The $100 gift card will be award if the book breaks the Kindle Top 100 and the $150 will be award if the book hits the Kindle Top 50.

Goodreads contest- Want to own one of two autographed trade paperback copies? Visit Blood, Smoke and Ashes' Goodreads page here and enter for a chance to win!

Free Book- Pandora's Children Book 1: In the Chair, which includes the stories "The Devil's Toothache" and "Dentures" will be free from Amazon from Monday, February 4th through Friday, February 8th. Pick up a copy!

Spread the Word- And of course, please re-tweet any of the tweets I send out to help spread the word of Blood, Smoke and Ashes, the contest, the giveaway and the free books. Check my handle everyday, @bconvisdmd, and sent my tweets to your friends.

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

To anyone who has read Blood, Smoke and Ashes, I would really appreciate positive Amazon and Goodread reviews. Large ad blitz and Rafflecopter contest will be starting February 4th with chance to win Amazon gift cards. Reviews are going to count for a lot more than anything else when entering the contest.

And of course, positive reviews will hopefully convince other people to buy and read BSA. If BSA actually breaks the Kindle Top 100 (which I know it probably won't, but we can always hope), I will be giving away a $100 Amazon gift card.

So get reviews in if you liked it, and be ready to join and share the contest on February fourth.

Saturday, January 12, 2013

Thanks to everyone who has been giving me feedback and finding small errors in Blood, Smoke and Ashes. Thankfully, there has nothing too egregious, some small spelling errors, an omitted word here and there, and missing periods at the end of paragraphs. Right now, I am putting together the trade paperback version. Formatting is done, just waiting for the last round of edits to get finished before I send off for an evaluation copy.

Other than that, starting to plot out my proposed next book, tentatively entitled The Hum. But that may change.

Anyway, to all of you who have bought the book and read it, thanks. And don't forget to "Like" the book's page and leave a review if you enjoyed it. If not... remember what your mother said: "If you have nothing nice to say, don;t say it at all."

Contest set to begin when advertising blitz begins in three weeks. No purchase necessary, just come back here, or to my Facebook page, and do a couple of things to spread the word and you will be entered. $20 Amazon gift cards to be given away every week for six weeks, and if by some grace of god I can get this thing into the top 100, I will be giving away 1 $100 Amazon gift card.

That's about it. If you haven't bought Blood, Smoke and Ashes yet, here's an excerpt so you can see what you're missing. A second, different excerpt can be found at www.darkestdayspublishing.com, my official author/publishing page. Enjoy!

The gallery
was pretty much empty when Molly was led into the tiny room. A single
journalist, a man in his sixties named Arnie Plank, was present, but there were
no cameras of any sort around. Representatives
from the Sheriff’s Department, including the Sheriff of Carson County himself,
occupied half dozen chairs out of the thirty in the galley. The mayor of Las Vegas and the governor of
Nevada, nervous looks of anticipation on both of their faces, stood against the
back wall, looking toward the execution booth and the chair within. The warden of the prison and several guards paced
anxiously next to the door to the booth and the large switch set in the wall
several feet away which would start the electrocution process.

It was a
monumental day to be sure, the execution of a female serial killer at the hands
of a new execution device, but the governor did not want a circus so he had
limited access to the event.Though all of
the wives of the murdered men had been invited, only one woman had chosen to
bear witness to Molly Blackburn’s final moments. Only Victoria Forrest, the
forty-five–year-old wife of Martin Forrest, a foreman overseeing the
construction of the Stardust Hotel, had accepted the invitation to watch her
husband’s murderer get executed. She sat
in the front of the two rows, in the center, so she could get a perfect
view. Her hair was pulled back into a
ponytail and her blouse was open a button or two at the neck, revealing a
teardrop diamond suspended from a supple gold chain.

Father Calhoun
stood in the back of the room, apart from the governor and mayor. He
hadn’t planned on staying to witness the execution when he arrived at the
prison earlier in the day, but after his short conversation with Molly, he had
developed an irrational need to see her die. It wasn't out of any sense
of vengeance, but a sense of concern. He knew it was ridiculous, but her
last words echoed in his head, accompanied by that terrifying laugh. We’re only done when I say we’re done,
Father. It was insane of course; the
twenty–five-year-old woman was about to be executed by the state. They
were done. This was the end of Molly Blackburn.

But Father
Calhoun, though not a superstitious man, needed to see the body before he would
feel comfortable again.

Molly was
still dressed in her gray jumpsuit when two guards strapped her down to the
simple wood and metal chair set up behind the window separating the viewing
area and the execution booth. Once she was restrained, an act she did not
struggle against, they strategically placed electrodes on her body, one on the
bald patch of her head, one on her right calf, creating a path through
which the alternating currents would be passed to stop the heart and
destroy her organs.

Once she was
secured, the leather straps tightened, the electrodes tested, everything else
checked twice, the men left the room.
The warden stepped in, stood several feet from the condemned.

“Molly Blackburn,” he said, “you have been found guilty by a
jury of your peers of murdering eleven people over the course of six weeks
earlier this year, including your own husband, Maxwell Blackburn.
In minutes, the great state of Nevada will execute you for your crimes.
Have you any last words before your punishment is carried out?”

There was a moment of tense silence before Molly finally
spoke.

“I make no apologies for my actions,” she said quietly from
the chair she was strapped to. Her neck was bent, her head angled toward the
ground. Her black hair was a curtain in front of her face. But her soft,
menacing voice still carried clearly through the bars of the booth into the
gallery beyond. “I'm only sorry I didn't get to kill more.”

There was an uncomfortable stirring in the gallery at these
words as people shifted nervously where they sat or stood. There was
something decidedly unsettling about being in the presence of a bona fide
monster.

Molly lifted her head. She slowly looked around the
room, her dark eyes peeking out from between strands of dirty black hair.
Her penetrating gaze took in everyone in her field of view, finally settled on
Father Calhoun despite the shadows that cloaked him. She offered the
priest a cruel little smile. “I would do it all over again,” she
said.

“I will do it all over again.”

If you're intrigued, Blood, Smoke and Ashes can be found, for the moment, at both Amazon and Barnes and Nobles for only $.99. Enjoy!

Monday, December 31, 2012

Want to read my first full length novel, the 350 page horror/thriller Blood, Smoke and Ashes?

Own a Kindle device or Kindle software?

Have a friend or family member who may enjoy it?

Don't want to pay for it?

Well you're in luck! Until Thursday, January 3rd I will be gifting an eBook copy to anyone who is interested.

All I ask is that you try to read it before the end of the month and post a positive review at Amazon if you enjoy it.

How do you get a copy? It's simple. Either e-mail me at darkestdayspublishing@gmail.com or private message me at my author FB page http://www.facebook.com/BradleyConvissarAuthor and leave your e-mail or the gift recipient's e-mail.
Don't worry... your e-mail will not be given to anyone else or used to harass you, only to send you a copy of the book.

Be advised, this book HAS been professionally edited by an honest-to-god professional editor who not only fixed spelling, grammar, syntax, etc, but also advised on pacing, timeline, and overall story. I made many changes after the final editing, though, and while I did my best to make sure there were no errors, we all know small things can slip through. If anyone notices anything, either minor or glaring, I would love if you would contact me so that I may make changes before my advertising campaign begins in February.

And keep your eyes open starting February 4th at all three of my sites for a contest where I will be giving away a $20 Amazon gift card every week for 6 weeks and possibly a $100 and $150 Amazon gift card. No purchase will be necessary to enter the contest.

Thursday, November 8, 2012

Coffin Hop Winners
I am feeling quite generous in the wake of Sandy. So here is what is going to happen:

Anyone who commented on my Coffin Hop post is entitled to a free eCopy of Blood, Smoke and Ash, a free eCopy of Reflecting on Midnight AND a free signed paperback copy of Blood, Smoke and Ashes. Yes, I will send anyone who left a comment a physical copy of the book when it is released in February. True, you may have already read the eCopy, but it's always fun to have a physical book.

So what do you have to do? Just e-mail me at darkestdayspublishing@gmail.com with your e-mail address so I can gift you a copy of both eBooks and a real address so I can send you a physical copy when it is released. My novella collection Reflecting on Midnight will be sent by the end of the week while Blood, Smoke and Ashes will be sent as soon as it is available.

Unfortunately, both are only available for Amazon in eBook form. Of course, if you don't have a Kindle or Kindle software, you will be able to enjoy Blood, Smoke and Ashes in paperback as soon as it is out. And if you don't have a Kindle, I can still send you an HTML copy of Reflecting on Midnight for you to enjoy on your computer. So drop me a message, make sure you let me know what your Blogger name was so I can make sure you actually left a comment, and you will be added to the list!

Cover Reveal
I have been working with the wonderful and talented Scarlett Rugers at http://booksat.scarlettrugers.com/ for the past month to create a cover for Blood, Smoke and Ashes. And after half a dozen concepts and a dozen tweaks, we have a winner:

It's exactly what I wanted and I couldn't be happier. It's simple and sleek and not too cluttered. For a larger view and a book synopsis, stop by www.darkestdayspublishing.com. And don't forget to share, share, share!